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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. row — a line
  3. stock — shares
  4. lean — thin
  5. capital — money
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. leaves — to go away
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. ball — a dance
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. ball — a great time
  15. capital — a city
  16. stock — goods
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. wave — a sudden rise
  20. mine — for digging
  21. row — to paddle
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. wave — of the sea
  24. mine — belonging to me

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com